Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009

[kevshat]

	Durham	6.5	6.5	6.5	7.5	7.5	7	7	7	6	7.5	6.5	7	8	7	7	8.2
	Essex	6	7.5	6.5	8	6.5	7	5.5	9	7	6.5	8	7	9	7.5	7.5	6.8
	Kent	7	7.5	6.5	8	6	7	8	9	6.5	7	8	8	9	7	7	7.4
	Nottinghamshire	10	11	10	10	10	11	11	9	10	8.5	11	11	10	10	10	13.5
	Somerset	10	9	10	13	8.5	11	15	9	11	12	15	13	13	11	11	12
	Yorkshire	13	15	15	15	13	15	15	11	11	13	11	15	11	13	15	12
	Lancashire	15	10	10	13	10	11	13	11	11	11	13	10	15	11	10	13.5
	Hampshire	13	13	13	11	11	13	11	13	15	13	15	13	15	15	11	16
	Middlesex	15	15	15	13	15	15	15	15	15	17	13	15	15	15	15	15.5
	Surrey	15	13	15	15	15	13	15	17	15	15	17	15	15	13	15	18
	Sussex	15	15	15	17	19	15	15	11	17	13	15	13	17	17	17	17
	Worcestershire	17	17	17	21	19	17	15	13	21	17	21	17	21	17	17	20
	Warwickshire	17	17	17	17	19	17	15	13	17	15	19	17	21	17	17	21
	Northamptonshire	26	26	26	26	29	26	21	34	26	34	34	26	21	26	26	34
	Gloucestershire	21	26	26	34	34	29	21	26	34	29	41	26	21	34	26	25
	Derbyshire	34	34	34	34	41	34	21	51	41	41	41	34	34	41	34	25
	Leicestershire	41	41	41	51	26	41	34	34	41	34	41	34	29	41	41	40
	Glamorgan	41	51	51	51	41	51	21	67	51	41	51	51	34	51	41	50
	Ireland	501	501	501	201	501	501	101	501	501	251	251	501	501	501	501	200
	Scotland	751	501	501	501	1001	501	101	501	1501	501	501	501	501	501	501	200
Place terms		2 1/3	2 1/3	2 1/3					4 1/5	2 1/3	2 1/3		2 1/3	2 1/2

The first one day competition of the domestic season begins in the morning. It's the 50 over Friends Provident Trophy. There's only been one minor change in the format from last season. Whereas the 4 groups were regionalised last season they are now randomly drawn and are as follows. Group A Nottinghamshire Hampshire Worcestershire Leicestershire Ireland Group B Kent Middlesex Somerset Warwickshire Scotland Group C Durham Gloucestershire Yorkshire Sussex Surrey Group D Essex Derbyshire Northants Lancashire Glamorgan All matches go by the international 50 over rules with batting and bowling powerplays. The referral system has been booted into touch.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 3 outrights for me. Ladbrokes go 1st 4 at 1/5th odds. Not a fan of 1/5 odds in a realistic 18 runner field. 1pt ew Yorkshire to win Friends Provident Trophy 14/1 Coral (1/3 1,2) Yorkshire were going really well in this competition before they walked into a Graham Napier onslaught in the semi finals. They went to fortress Bristol and won in the quarter finals and had every chance in that semi final until Napier took it away from them. They then went well in the Pro40 and eventually managed to get promotion to Division 1. So they are far from a poor one day side. They have some real quality batsmen in their ranks. Jacques Rudolph and Anthony McGrath will be the mainstays but whenever Michael Vaughan is available it will be a real boost. Rana Naved plays the pinch hitting role well while the likes of Gale, Lyth and Brophy all add solid contributions. With this tournament in the main beginning at 10.45am a decent seam attack is a must and there can't be many better around than Hoggard, Kruis, Rana Naved and Patterson. For turning wickets they have Adil Rashid and the impressive David Wainwright so all angles really are covered. Their group is without a doubt the group of death but 2 qualify which helps and should they go through it'll take a decent side to stop them so at 14's I'll go with the White Rose outright. 1pt Warwickshire to win Group B 9/2 Boylesports Warwickshire are a tidy and efficient one day outfit with lots of good one day batsmen who can dig in or score quickly and a handy seam attack too. Spin is covered well, particularly when Jeetan Patel arrives so the balance of the side is fine. They bat a long way down which is essential these days and they'll be tough to beat. Kent are rightly favourites for this group but it's early in the season and they have a couple of injuries/IPL call up's and the rest are all pretty even and have their weaknesses. This is a wide open group and the Bears at 9/2 offer some good value. 1pt Gloucestershire to win Group C 10/1 Boylesports Gloucestershire have been reunited with the coach who made them the most successful one day side in the country around the turn of the century. John Bracewell was also successful in limited overs cricket with New Zealand as well and I'm sure he'll set Gloucester up to be tough to beat. They have all the tools at their disposal. A good batting lineup in which Spearman, Gidman and Marshall can take games away from their opponents and a decent if a little expensive seam attack in Franklin, Lewis and Kirby. They might be a bit short in the spin department with Dawson injured but Taylor can bowl spin. Bracewell knows how to win one day matches and that can be critical. This looks a tough group but Gloucestershire are still a good one day side and 10/1 is a daft price really and one I'm happy to have a small bet on.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 3 bets for tomorrow. I'll start with the TV game where there's 2 bets. That's Essex vs Northants. 3pts Northants to beat Essex 7/4 Betfred Northants have a terrible recent record at "Fortress Chelmsford" but part of their defeats here last year were conditions related and they shouldn't play a part in this match. They'll be going to an Essex side who will be without Ravi Bopara and Graham Napier who are at the IPL while Alastair Cook is touch and go after he fractured a finger in the nets. Danish Kaneria is having visa problems so he hasn't arrived yet. Northants are missing one or two as well. David Sales remains out after his knee operation and Niall O'Brien is still away with Ireland. I'm a little bit concerned about their batting but that wasn't a worry as they hit 380 after being stuck in during their Championship match with Leicestershire last week. They have some good one day batsmen in Rob White, Andrew Hall and Riki Wessels anyway. Stephen Peters can be the glue at the top of the innings. David Lucas and Johannes van der Wath will open the bowling with Monty Panesar expected to be a threat on pitches which usually turn. Essex still have the likes of Pettini, Foster and Ten Doeschate in their ranks but their 3 key men in Bopara, Napier and Kaneria are all missing which levels this match out a lot. Essex are still favourites but Northants are dangerous and 7/4 is a more than fair price on them to win this. 1pt ew A.Hall Top Northants Batsman 6/1 Coral (1/5 1,2,3) Andrew Hall is a solid one day batsman who has 3 ODI half centuries to his name such is the quality he has in his locker with the willow. He often bats at 3 in one day matches for Northants which immediately makes him a decent bet. He comes into this match off the back of an excellent ton in the Championship so is in real good form with the bat. David Sales' absence makes this a wide open market for the top Northants batsman but with plenty of time to get himself in and build an innings, with the South African in good form he's well worth an ew bet. 3pts Warwickshire to beat Somerset Evs Blue Square These two sides have just come off the back of a very high scoring Championship match at Taunton but for some reason the fixture list has brought them both to Edgbaston for this match. Somerset are expected to go well in one day cricket and while their batting is spot on, their bowling isn't. Charl Willoughby is their reliable man but the rest can go and go for plenty. Even the batting could be weakened by a potential back injury to Justin Langer. Warwickshire are pretty strong all over. They too have a good batting lineup, perhaps not as explosive as Somerset's but effective none the less. They have a good bowling attack too in both the seam and spin department and as I mentioned in my group bet they bat a long way down which is key. Two good one day sides are doing battle here but home advantage often counts for a lot early season and at Evs that gives Warwickshire a bit of extra value and I'll take them to beat an over rated Somerset side with their weak looking bowling attack.

[WoodyTHFC]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Outrights: Middlesex 16/1 sky 3 pts e.w 1/3 odds 2 places and to win group B 11/2 sky 5 pts. Middlesex had history in the shorter formats of the game last summer when they won the 20 20 and whilst their form in the other shorter formats was disappointing (relegation from pro 40 and just missing out on the knock out stages of this last year), they may feel they can strike again in a shorter format. Im not quite sure why they were as disappointing in the more one day formats because its surprisng a team can be so good in the 20 20 and yet drop so much but they may look to put that right this year. I do feel the added power plays could bring a bit more 20 20 style action into this fromat and perhaps that will help. They miss Shah atm and also henderson although his success last season was 20 20 based really. However to counter that they have a potentially really exciting opener in Hughes and some talents like Morgan, Malan who will look to step up further now Joyce has gone and are very capable to do so. The bowling looks fairly decent: Murtagh possibly under rated, Finn a player with promise, the veteran Udal covers the spin option without Kartik. Its not an easy group at all with 4 tough looking teams going for 2 places realistically but Middlesex will want to carry out some of their 20 20 success into other formats this season and this is an opportunity to do so. Hampshire 14/1 tote 3 pts e.w 1/2 odds 2 places Hampshire have some history in this competition and whilst last season they didnt play as well in it as previous years, they found better form as the season went on last time around and were playing decent enough in all fromats by the end of the last season. They finished pro 40 really well and were not that far off winning it in the end. They will miss Mascarenhas for this until the really later stages if still in but they still have a talented squad of players. I said the early day I wasnt sure quite about new signing Cork's wicket taking ability in the four day format but he didnt exactly make a bad start last week and whilst it will be interesting to see if he can sustain that through the whole season, in one day cricket he is still really useful. As ever with Hampshire much depends on whether or not they can quite score heavily enough but emerging players like Dawson will help and if some of their more genuine batsman can have a good competition they could go well. Notts clear danger in the group but after that I think Worc, Leic and Ire are pretty fair and hence Hamps chances of at least a last 8 spot is decent for me and from then on they are a threat. For the opening matches: Hampshire to beat Worcestershire 8/11 sj 10 pts I said a lot of what I thought about Hampshire earlier. They are genuinely a solid one day outfit and have been so for a while now and will fancy their chances to do so quite well here. In Worcester they face a side possibly lacking a player or two in both departments. Their one day batting is stronger than their four day mainly due to Davies in this format but after he and Solanki, they need a bit more depth. Ali and Arif could be carrying the bowling a little bit too so there are some concerns. Hampshire beat Worcester in the only result in the 4 day version and could get an early double up here. Gloucestershire to beat Sussex 6/5 sky 10 pts Like Gloucester at home here. They have built up a strong one day reputation in years gone by and whilst that went a little bit recently, they won their group in this last year and ended up safe in pro 40 div 1 despite a bad finish. Their one day form was their only consolation last year because in other formats they were very poor but Bracewell has come in and that could help. He has a reputation already built here and that was mainly in the one day format and mainly built in matches at Bristol where traditionally Gloucs were so hard to beat. Also they looked in good form in the recent county championship match so that should help. In Sussex they face a tough team who won the pro 40 last year somehow from an inprobable position in the last innings. They have signed Joyce who could be revitalised on the coast and should help. However Gloucs are normally very strong here and also with a possible match fitness edge, they are the pick.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Poor day today, both Northants and Warwickshire put up good scores but then only took 5 wickets between them to both lose. Yorkshire and Gloucestershire both won though so it wasn't a complete disaster. -8 for today going into next weekend.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009

Sunday 26 April 2009	Home	Away	bookmakers margin on the event. However, they do not take account of commissions that may be charged.">BPP
Ireland v Worcestershire (10:45BST)	5.00	1.25	100.00 %	Details »
Hide « Ireland v Worcestershire
Leicestershire v Hampshire (10:45BST)	2.30	1.66	103.48 %	Details »

Somerset v Kent (10:45BST)	1.90	2.10	100.00 %	Details »
Hide « Somerset v Kent
Middlesex v Scotland (12:00BST)	1.12	8.00	101.39 %	Details »

Gloucestershire v Surrey (10:45BST)	1.90	2.10	100.00 %	Details »
Hide « Gloucestershire v Surrey
Yorkshire v Sussex (10:45BST)	1.72	2.30	101.37 %	Details »

Derbyshire v Glamorgan (10:45BST)	1.72	2.32	101.00 %	Details »
Hide « Derbyshire v Glamorgan
Northamptonshire v Lancashire (10:45BST)	2.26	1.72	102.14 %	Details »

3 for me tomorrow. Nothing in the TV match because it's due to be pretty rain affected and I've got the outright bet going in that so I've chosen to leave it. Decided to stick to the East of the country where the weather is meant to be fine. I'll start with the Leicestershire vs Hampshire match as I'm meeting up with Matt to go to that game. 4pts Hampshire to beat Leicestershire 4/6 Stan James Hampshire made a bad start to their Friends Provident Trophy campaign last week when they went down against a decent Worcestershire side. The Hawks didn't play that badly though, they just ran into Moeen Ali on an inspired day which can happen. Leicestershire were thrashed by Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge so already this match has a big significance in this group. Hampshire will need to do without their overseas player Marcus North as he upped sticks and fcuked off to Dubai for Australia's one day series halfway through their Championship match with Warwickshire in the week. Nic Pothas will continue to captain the Hawks in Mascarenhas' absence while Dominic Cork will continue to deputise for Mascarenhas. The Foxes come into this match off the back of a creditable draw with West Indies. Boeta Dippenaar looks to have started the season quite well while HD Ackerman is usually a run machine. Nixon and Allenby apart though the Foxes have a youthful batting lineup. Iain O'Brien is set to make his debut for the county in this match and he'll boost a young bowling attack. Hampshire are a decent one day unit, only weather stopped them winning the Pro40 last season and even though the lost last week they still put up 270 on a wearing pitch. Leicestershire are usually tough to beat on their own patch but they have a young batting lineup who could struggle with the quality of the Hawks' seam attack. Hampshire win here for me. 4pts Lancashire to beat Northants 8/11 Coral Generally backing Lancashire and Surrey are poor value bets but even at 8/11 I think Lancs are value here. That's mostly due to the absence of Johannes van der Wath from the Steelbacks' bowling lineup. He's got knee cartilage problems. They'll also be without David Sales who is still with his feet up after his knee op. Niall O'Brien could come into the starting XI now he's back from Ireland duty but the bowling attack looks very weak. I'd imagine the seam attack will consist of Andrew Hall and then David Wigley, David Lucas and Steven Crook - not good! Lancashire have some quality in their side even though Jimmy Anderson has been ruled out by the ECB. What harm bowling 10 overs will do him I'm not overly sure but there we go. Kyle Hogg, Glen Chapple and Tom Smith are decent seamers at this level and none of them go for plenty that often. Ashwell Prince looks the class act on either side with the bat and if he goes well Lancashire look certain for a decent score. I like their bowling attack which has Sajid Mahmood's pace and Gary Keedy's wizardry in it too and I think they'll win this one. 3pts Glamorgan to beat Derbyshire 13/10 Bet365 I don't think there's much between these two sides but without Chris Rogers I'm prepared to take the Phantoms on here. Glamorgan walloped them in the Pro40 and have the better all round side here for me. Derbyshire's batting looks a touch weak. I'm a huge fan of Dan Redfern and if he gets out of Derby I think he'll be a very good player. Greg Smith and Wavell Hinds are hit and miss although to be fair to Smith he is more consistant than he was. Stuart Law will look to be the glue to this lineup. However all too often the lower order has to rescue them. With the ball, Graham Wagg is on fire at the minute and Ian Hunter appears to be bowling well. Charl Langeveldt is away on IPL duty. Glamorgan have some decent players themselves. Mark Cosgrove is a typical Australian opening batsman in that he dominates from the off and can win games on his own. Tom Maynard is a huge talent and it could be this year he really begins to fufil that potential and Mark Wallace has been solid as a rock with the bat for a long time. It's the Dragons bowling attack I like here. Wharf is injured and Croft isn't in the squad but James Harris, David Harrison and Dean Cosker are. Garnett Kruger makes up the bowling attack. Derbyshire picked up an eyecatching win over Surrey in the Championship in the week but Glamorgan were comfortable in a stalemate at Lords. I just think they have the better bowling attack here and that makes a big difference at Derby. I'd have this more 5/6 the pair so I'll side with the Welsh side in this one.

[WoodyTHFC]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Gloucestershire to beat Surrey 10/11 sj 10 pts I have picked Gloucester a few times already this season and going for them again despite a defeat in a low scoring game in the county championship. They had earlier started the season well, beating Sussex in this comp and forcing Surrey to follow on in the county game. Surrey have in contrast been poor so far this season. Lucky the weather saved them in the first game and then a really poor loss to Derbyshire. Gloucester for me here.

[Matt]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Good to see you yesterday Kev, hope you enjoyed Grace Road, very biased but still my favourite ground in Cricket. :clap ;)

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Good to see you too mate. Had a really good day. Lovely little ground is Grace Rd and £2.80 a pint isn't to be sniffed at :clap:clap. That leaves just Derby that I've not been to so if you fancy going to a game there when you play them let me know mate :ok. +2.58 for the day after Hampshire and Lancashire won while Glamorgan never got enough runs really. Good day for the outrights too so can't complain. Back to -5.42 for the tournament.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009

Sunday 3 May 2009	Home	Away	bookmakers margin on the event. However, they do not take account of commissions that may be charged.">BPP
Hampshire v Leicestershire (10:45BST)	1.57	2.62	101.73 %	Details »
Hide « Hampshire v Leicestershire
Nottinghamshire v Ireland (10:45BST)	1.10	8.20	103.10 %	Details »

Middlesex v Kent (12:00BST)	2.00	2.00	100.00 %	Details »
Hide « Middlesex v Kent
Warwickshire v Scotland (12:00BST)	1.16	7.00	100.00 %	Details »

Yorkshire v Gloucestershire (10:45BST)	1.80	2.24	100.20 %	Details »
Hide « Yorkshire v Gloucestershire
Durham v Surrey (12:00BST)	1.54	2.76	101.17 %	Details »

Essex v Glamorgan (10:45BST)	1.44	3.40	98.64 %	Details »
Hide « Essex v Glamorgan
Lancashire v Derbyshire (12:00BST)	1.60	2.62	100.60 %	Details »

2 for me tomorrow. 4pts Kent to beat Middlesex Evs Ladbrokes Kent were thumped last week which Middlesex did a job on Scotland but Kent have players back and will be boosted by their win over Essex in the Championship. I like Wayne Parnell as overseas player and he along with Joseph can form a good new ball pairing. Middlesex will be without 4 key players in Strauss, Shah, Henderson and Kartik though IPL/England commitments and that could be the key. Kent will be without Key but that didn't seem to bother them in the week. They are the better one day side and I'll take them to win this. 4pts Hampshire to beat Leicestershire 4/7 Stan James Hampshire were fairly comfortable winners of the reverse match last week and I think they'll win again. They have a top one day bowling attack and their batting isn't bad. Iain O'Brien should enjoy the conditions at the Rose Bowl but I wasn't impressed with Leicester's batting and if Allenby remains out, Wayne White batting 7 is way too high for him. Poor batting side against a very good bowling attack usually only equals one thing and I think that'll be a Hawks win here.

[WoodyTHFC]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Middlesex to beat Kent evens bet3 10 pts Got to back my home team here at southgate. Middlesex have actually started the season alright. They have had a couple of high scoring draws in the county championship with their batting looking strong and an easy win over a hapless Scotland. Hughes looks a real player and could be a match winner all English summer. He has able support from the likes of Morgan, Malan if they pick him, Dexter who may have a point to prove. The bowling attack looks ok, Udal provides the spin option with seam from murtagh who bowled really well in the second innings in the recent county game, promising Finn and maybe Silverwood if they go that route. Its a tough game no doubt against Kent but Kent up till two days ago had made a stuttering start to the season and despite a confidence boosting win from following on in the county, that match must have taken some toll and Middlesex have at least had an extra days rest. Kent also lost in this comp already and are without Key and also Joseph who bashed up essex yesterday. Going for Middlesex here.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Good day for me today with both bets winning so a pick up of +6.29 for the day which puts me up 0.87pts for the competition with another full set of fixtures tomorrow. I'll come back with my bets for tomorrow later this evening.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009

Monday 4 May 2009	Home	Away	bookmakers margin on the event. However, they do not take account of commissions that may be charged.">BPP
Leicestershire v Ireland (10:45BST)	1.20	6.20	99.46 %	Details »
Hide « Leicestershire v Ireland
Worcestershire v Nottinghamshire (10:45BST)	2.25	1.73	102.25 %	Details »

Kent v Scotland (10:45BST)	1.06	10.50	103.64 %	Details »
Hide « Kent v Scotland
Somerset v Middlesex (10:45BST)	1.66	2.37	102.11 %	Details »

Yorkshire v Surrey (10:45BST)	1.66	2.50	100.00 %	Details »
Hide « Yorkshire v Surrey
Durham v Sussex (12:00BST)	1.61	2.50	101.90 %	Details »

Derbyshire v Essex (10:45BST)	2.50	1.66	100.00 %	Details »
Hide « Derbyshire v Essex
Northamptonshire v Glamorgan (10:45BST)	1.72	2.37	100.00 %	Details »

2 for Monday. One of them is the TV game which I'll go with 1st. 3pts Worcestershire to beat Nottinghamshire 13/10 Boylesports Nottinghamshire come into this match having beaten both Leicestershire and Ireland very easily. Worcestershire also have 2 comfortable wins to their name and this looks like being a good match between two sides both protecting 100% records in the tournament. It's an important match too with Hampshire also having 2 wins and 2 matches against Ireland to play unlike these two. Worcestershire are a decent little one day side. They'll miss Kabir Ali who is out injured but Ashley Noffke is in Royals colours at long last. Vikram Solanki is in decent form with the bat as is Moeen Ali and if the likes of Stephen Moore can show his class then Worcestershire should go well. Gareth Andrew and Chris Whelan will need to step up with the ball and a lot will rest on Gareth Batty who is the spin option. Nottinghamshire will be without Stuart Broad and Ryan Sidebottom who are away with England while Darren Pattinson and Charlie Shreck are both still injured. Chris Read returns to the side after the birth of his child and he resumes the captaincy. Graeme Swann is also with England. Alex Hales will look to continue his good form with the bat while Samit Patel will be looking to show the England selectors that he is fit after all. These two are both decent sides but Notts are just missing a few, especially with the ball. You can understand why they are favourites but Worcester are no mugs and I think they can win this on their own ground. 3pts Glamorgan to beat Northants 11/8 Bet365 Glamorgan come into this match off the back of a stunning and eyecatching win over Essex where they chased down the best part of 300 with almost 4 overs to spare. Northants are battered by injuries and have lost their opening two matches against Essex and Lancashire. Should they lose here their FP Trophy campaign could be over. Northants will be without Stephen Peters, David Sales and Johannes van der Wath - all key misses. Niall O'Brien is back in the side but Monty Panesar is out, at England's request. Andrew Hall plays though as does Riki Wessels who has given up the gloves to O'Brien. Glamorgan have a very hard hitting Aussie opening the batting in Mark Cosgrove and Northants will need to get rid of him early else he can win a game almost on his own, as Essex found out. However he's not their only match winner with the bat. Gareth Rees hit an excellent unbeaten ton yesterday while Tom Maynard is highly talented. With the ball, Robert Croft isn't in the squad but James Harris is. He'll take the new ball with David Harrison with Garnett Kruger backing up. Dalrymple and Cosker offer spin options. Glamorgan aren't a bad one day side at all. Only a strong Worcestershire stopped them being a division 1 team by winning the Pro40 playoff last season and the Dragons come here very much under rated. Northants have key personnel out so I fancy the Welsh side to win their 2nd game in two days.

[WoodyTHFC]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Middlesex had a shocker on a surface at Southgate that was by all reports nothing like the featherbed from the county game, so Im +1.1 so far in this. Nearly took Glamorgan myself today but major question marks over Cosgrave's fitness put me off. Just the one: Yorkshire to beat Surrey 4/6 sj 10 pts It seems whatever Surrey do atm they cant win. Even yesterday against a good Durham side they couldnt chase down a score they were in control off as they lost wicktes of the last couple of balls to fall 1 short. Ramprakash made an unbeaten 100 in that game but even his heriocs were in vain yesterday. Surrey now have made a shocking start to the season. Thrashed by Gloucester in this, lucky to avoid defeat to them in the county and couldnt survive against lowly derby in the county. Yesterday was a better performance but I still cant have them. Yorkshire lost yesterday as well but at least they already have 2 wins in this and a defeat to an inform gloucester team wasnt a disgrace, at least it wasnt like surrey's no show against them last week. Rudolph looks in great form at the start of the season and Im sure a certain former Eng captain will want to make a point soon and he did get some runs against Sussex in this not long ago, Yorkshire for me here.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Decent starts for both my bets today. Both have their opponents struggling at 50/3. Hopefully the rain which is around the midlands today stays away long enough for both to push for wins.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Glamorgan let Northants get too many but Worcestershire won easily enough so a small 0.9pt profit for the day and +1.77 for the competition going into next week which is a full week of FP action.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 A full week of FP cricket begins tomorrow.

Sunday 10 May 2009	Home	Away	bookmakers margin on the event. However, they do not take account of commissions that may be charged.">BPP
Ireland v Hampshire (10:45BST)	8.00	1.16	98.21 %	Details »
Hide « Ireland v Hampshire
Nottinghamshire v Worcestershire (10:45BST)	1.72	2.22	102.94 %	Details »

Kent v Warwickshire (10:45BST)

1.66

2.37

102.11 %

Details »

Gloucestershire v Durham (12:00BST)	1.90	2.02	101.89 %	Details »
Hide « Gloucestershire v Durham
Sussex v Surrey (12:00BST)	1.80	2.36	97.93 %	Details »

Essex v Lancashire (10:45BST)	1.83	2.20	100.00 %	Details »
Hide « Essex v Lancashire
Northamptonshire v Derbyshire (10:45BST)	1.73	2.20	103.26 %	Details »

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 3 for me on Sunday. 4pts Sussex to beat Surrey 4/5 Stan James Sussex and Surrey both won last time out and they clash at Hove here. Sussex have named a full strength squad with the exception of Matt Prior who is away with England. Yasir Arafat is back in England and he'll make his 2nd debut for the county in this game. Surrey have been naming a youngish side in this competition and they've done the same thing here. They beat Yorkshire last week but they very much had conditions in their favour. Middlesex showed yesterday that they have an attack which can go for plenty. Arafat gives Sussex good options and with Ed Joyce, Murray Goodwin and Michael Yardy in their side with the bat I think the Sharks will score enough to win this one. 3pts Lancashire to beat Essex 6/5 Totesport Lancashire have made a perfect start to the FP Trophy with 3 wins from 3 matches. This represents their biggest test but they have the side to win this game. Glamorgan went to Chelmsford last week and won and Lancashire can do the same. Essex have been fairly good this season too apart from that Glamorgan match and they'll be boosted by the return of Ravi Bopara for this game. Essex are at full strength with the exception of Alastair Cook who is away with England. David Masters comes back into the squad with Graham Napier now back from the IPL and Danish Kaneria fully into the swings of things after his delayed start. Lancashire are at full strength with the exception of their England players. That means their lineup includes Ashwell Prince who should go well on this wicket. Chapple and Mahmood are in excellent touch with the ball and with Horton and Chilton in great form with the bat I think Lancashire have the tools to win this one. 3pts Derbyshire to beat Northants 6/5 Boylesports Northants are still suffering with injuries and while they won last week against Glamorgan, Derbyshire have a better bowling attack to restrict the Steelbacks batsmen with. Chris Rogers is now in place for Derby and will make his reappearance in this game for a side who have begun the season well. With no Sales or van der Wath in the Northants side this represents a good opportunity for Derby to claim another win in this competition. Wavell Hinds has been in good touch with the bat, as has Greg Smith and Stuart Law still has plenty of ability while Graham Wagg is in great touch with the ball. Charl Langeveldt remains in SA in the IPL but other than that Derby will be at full strength and I think they can win this one.

[WoodyTHFC]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Durham to beat Gloucestershire evens sky 10 pts Gloucester have been more like the Gloucester of old under Bracewell with 3/3 in this so far. However this is a stern test for them against a good Durham side. Durham may have eng call ups, although for me colly should be playing in this to get some form, however they still have a good side out which says a fair bit for their depth. They have made a bad start to this as they lost have lost two games out of three in this but have managed to just beat Surrey in one game. In the county, durham have played some decent cricket so far in some draws. It wont be easy for durham at Gloucester but as I said they are a strong outfit and better than they have showed in the one day format so far this season and for me can edge this one. Lancashire to beat Essex 6/5 tote 10 pts Lancashire have started the season well under Moores and can continue that in this game. Essex have a reputation at home but that was precious good to them last week when they lost and it should also be noted that their county form has suffered lately, a loss from a strong position to kent and then they lost to northants. Lancashire are managing to score enough runs so far with Horton in very good one day form in particular if not four day form. Their bowling attack is pretty strong and I only think the Chelmsford factor is making essex favs for this and that wasn’t much good last week. Even with Bopara its Lancashire for me. Sussex to beat Surrey 4/5 sj 10 pts Taking Surrey on again here. They managed a win in their last FP game but really it was Yorkshire who lost that with an amazing batting collapse chasing a reasonable looking target. That was their only win so far this season. In the county so far Surrey have been poor, losing once and arguably lucky not to lose 3/3. Sussex haven’t been amazing so far this season both in the county and in the FP but for me they have far the better quality on show here. Surrey are an average team who think they are better than what they are and I fancy Sussex for this.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Phew that Surrey run chase got a bit too close for comfort but Sussex held on in the end. Derbyshire won too but Lancashire's batting lineup did a no show. Still, 2 out of 3 for the day and +3.93 for the day. +5.70 for the event now and Gloucestershire have almost got their group wrapped up at a massive price so going nicely at the minute. More games tomorrow which includes a TV match. I'll be back with bets later.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009

Monday 11 May 2009	Home	Away	bookmakers margin on the event. However, they do not take account of commissions that may be charged.">BPP
Kent v Middlesex (10:45BST)	1.61	2.50	101.90 %	Details »
Hide « Kent v Middlesex
Somerset v Scotland (10:45BST)	1.09	12.00	100.08 %	Details »

Gloucestershire v Yorkshire (12:00BST)	1.66	2.37	102.11 %	Details »
Hide « Gloucestershire v Yorkshire
Sussex v Durham (14:30BST)	2.10	1.90	100.00 %	Details »

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Contrary to what it says above, Sussex vs Durham is NOT a 2.30 start. It starts at 12.00. 2 for me tomorrow. Kent vs Middlesex is the TV game and I've one bet in that which I'll do 1st. 4pts Kent vs Middlesex - Under 6 6's 6/4 Sportingbet This line looks fairly high to me. The St Lawrence Ground has fairly big boundaries and while there's a couple of big hitters on each side, neither batting lineup is firing completely on all cylinders. Both sides have pretty good bowling attacks who don't tend to give anything away. Middlesex have produced 3 batting collapses in recent weeks and if a 4th went here then there's no chance of 6 6's. However in order to ensure they don't collapse again I think they might play things a bit safer. Most of Kent's batting are stroke makers rather than hitters with the exception of Kemp and Mahmood but even then they'll struggle to hit 6's here. Conditions aren't likely to be helpful for 6 hitting either with a gale blowing across the ground making timing the ball tricky. You can go under 6.5 at 5/6 to get the extra 6 on your side but I'm pretty confident we won't get anywhere near 6 6's so will take sportingbet's line. 3pts Durham to beat Sussex 5/6 Betfred Durham were thrashed by Gloucestershire yesterday and will need to win this game to keep their hopes of qualifying alive. Sussex beat Surrey yesterday but had a few hairy moments in the process. The pitches at Hove at the minute are very high scoring and Durham's batting lineup is to be feared a lot more than Surrey's was yesterday while the County Championship champions have a much better bowling attack than Surrey. Sussex are reliant an awful lot on Murray Goodwin with the bat although Luke Wright can fire on occasions. I just think that 1-11 Durham are the better and stronger side. Anyone can get done down at Fortress Bristol so I'm prepared to let that result go and take Durham to bounce back in style with a win over the Sharks.

[WoodyTHFC]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 At -20.9 in this so far. Just one for later: Sussex to beat Durham 11/10 bet3 10 pts I was on Durham yesterday in the hope that their one day form would turn around but it didn't as they were thrashed in a very poor display. Sussex in contrast had a win, albiet narrowly against Surrey. Whilst on paper Durham's side looks fairly strong, they have only won once all season now in all comps and that was a game that surrey gifted to them with two wickets in the last two balls to fall short by a run of a chase they were in control of. They have lost 3/4 in this comp so far including a reversal to sussex just a couple of games back, so they are struggling for a bit of form in this format at this present time. Sussex have a fair batting line up for me as they showed yesterday with the base of Joyce, Goodwin and Yardy and then hitters like Wright, Arafat late on. Their bowling wasnt great yesterday but they pulled it back late on and on current form I have to go with the home side here.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009

Tuesday 12 May 2009	Home	Away	bookmakers margin on the event. However, they do not take account of commissions that may be charged.">BPP
Hampshire v Nottinghamshire (10:45BST)	2.20	1.80	101.01 %	Details »
Hide « Hampshire v Nottinghamshire
Worcestershire v Leicestershire (10:45BST)	1.53	2.87	100.00 %	Details »

Warwickshire v Middlesex (12:00BST)

2.00

1.90

102.38 %

Details »

Lancashire v Northamptonshire (12:00BST)	1.66	2.37	102.11 %	Details »
Hide « Lancashire v Northamptonshire
Glamorgan v Essex (14:40BST)	2.62	1.57	101.73 %	Details »

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Poor day for me on Monday. I've long since disliked Geraint Jones so it was probably fitting he came out and smacked 3 sixes for the 1st time in his life :lol. Back to -1.30 for the competition but that will all change soon as Gloucester need only 1 more win to guarantee winning the group. 3 for me tomorrow. 2 match bets and a top bat in the TV game. As has been discussed in a lot of domestic threads over the last couple of years, we'll know who is going to win the TV game when Sky announce the result of the toss. Unfortunately I'll be somewhere between Luton and Bradford then but hopefully I can get up to Mowgli's in time to get a bet on at half time. Match bets 1st then the top bat. 4pts Nottinghamshire to beat Hampshire 4/5 Boylesports This Group A match sees two sides who are both right in the qualification mix pit their wits against each other. Hampshire have been badly hampered though by having their match with Ireland rained off so they really need to win this. A win for Notts, with a match with Ireland to come will see them in a good position to qualify. Nottinghamshire have named the same squad which beat Worcestershire at the weekend except they've added Ryan Sidebottom to it as he's been given permission to play. It's inconceivable that he doesn't play so it could be Luke Fletcher who makes way. Mark Wagh and Ali Brown will open and Hampshire have been on the wrong end of Brown too many times for me to remember. Patel, Voges and the young Hales offer a decent middle order. Hampshire are battered with injuries at the minute. They were already missing Marcus North who hasn't been given permission to return from Cricket Australia and now Nic Pothas, Chris Tremlett and James Tomlinson are all out injured. The ECB have hoiked Mascarenhas back from the IPL so he'll captain the Hawks but it will be a young bowling attack which is fielded. Our batting still isn't brilliant either although Chris Benham has been in excellent form so far. For so long Hampshire's strength has been their bowling attack but that looks weak for this match even with Mascarenhas' return. Notts are a good all round side and as much as I don't like the idea of it, I'm pretty sure they'll win this one. 3pts Middlesex to beat Warwickshire 10/11 Bet365 Middlesex put themselves right into the qualification picture in Group B with an excellent win over Kent yesterday in a game which Eoin Morgan showed all of his class. Warwickshire will be back in the mix with a win here but so far they've only managed to beat Scotland. Warwickshire will be without Darren Maddy who is out for the season and Ian Bell has joined England to prepare for the 2nd test. Ian Westwood will open the side but there doesn't appear to be an extra batsman in the squad so Bell's place could be filled by a young all rounder. Chris Woakes is the key with the ball in a bowling attack which isn't firing yet although Jeetan Patel should make them better in that department. Middlesex will keep with the same side for this game as the one which beat Kent so well. You could argue that their two best batsman - Hughes and Shah, both missed out yesterday so both will be looking to score good runs. I doubt Silverwood will be as good with the ball again as he was yesterday but he looks set to play again as only Gareth Berg and Billy Godleman are the extra names in the squad while Tim Murtagh is out with a hamstring injury he sustained in the Championship match last week. Middlesex are slowly getting their players back. Tim Murtagh is out but they showed yesterday they can cope without him. Apart from that they are at full strength except Tyron Henderson. Warwickshire haven't really got going yet and with Bell out I think Middlesex can win this one. 1pt ew J.Dalrymple Top Glamorgan Batsman 11/2 Coral (1/5 1,2,3) This is a hard bet for me to place as anyone who knows me will be able to tell you that I can't stand this guy but credit where it is due he's begun the season in decent form with the bat. He's already top scored for the Welsh side in this competition against Derbyshire and he's also hit a century in the Championship along with a couple of half centuries. He plays spin well and showed in England colours that he can both bat, and pace an innings well. He's captain of Glamorgan these days which seems to have focused his batting a lot more and even though Cosgrove plays in this game I'm still going for Dalrymple to top score in a batting lineup which is nothing like as bad as it used to be.

[WoodyTHFC]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Easy win yesterday so back to -9.9. Middlesex to beat Warwickshire 10/11 bet3 10 pts Middlesex were awesome yesterday as they made a good side in Kent look ordinary. Whether they will produce the goods again is open to question as they can be terribly inconsistent as they showed in their two earlier FP games when they didnt even get 200 runs from two innings combined. However they should still back their batting line up. The 2 real class acts, Hughes and Shah missed out and yet due to the brilliance of Morgan and Compton that didnt matter. There are Malan and Dexter to add to that so its a strong batting line up. The bowling is weakened a bit due to the key loss of Murtagh but its still fair enough and Warwickshire are missing some key batsmen like Maddy and Bell for this so they will be confident enough they can restict them. Warwickshire have only beaten Scotland so far this season in all comps and I think Middlesex can be too strong for them today.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009

Wednesday 13 May 2009	Home	Away	bookmakers margin on the event. However, they do not take account of commissions that may be charged.">BPP
Surrey v Gloucestershire (10:45BST)	2.20	1.83	100.00 %	Details »
Hide « Surrey v Gloucestershire
Yorkshire v Durham (10:45BST)	1.90	2.00	102.38 %	Details »

Derbyshire v Lancashire (14:40BST)

2.25

1.72

102.34 %

Details »

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Awful day today. -10.30 for the competition now. Really disappointed with myself for taking Middlesex too. Still you live and learn. One for tomorrow at the minute. Will sleep on the TV game and see how the weather looks tomorrow because the forecast isn't great. 4pts Yorkshire to beat Durham 10/11 Stan James This is a big game for Yorkshire. With Gloucestershire nearly having the group sewn up it looks like a straight race between Sussex and Yorkshire for the 2nd qualification spot in Group C. In order to have a realistic chance of qualifying the Phoenix need to win this one. Durham can still mathematically qualify but injuries and batting collapses aren't helping their cause. Yorkshire have named a solid squad. There's no Michael Vaughan who is nursing an injury or Matthew Hoggard who seems to be overlooked for these one day games now which is a shame because I think he can thrive in the early morning early season conditions. Jacques Rudolph and Anthony McGrath will lead the batting while Rana Naved and Deon Kruis will be key with the ball. Durham have a lot of injuries going into this match which has resulted in them naming a few youngsters. Michael di Venuto is out injured, as is Steve Harmison while Mark Davies continues to miss out with injury. Graham Onions and Paul Collingwood are both with England so the likes of Kyle Coetzer have been brought into the team along with a couple of academy bowlers. Yorkshire really need to win this and against a Durham side who've not started the season too well so far I expect them to do so and hopefully for the sake of my outright bet, they can win comfortably to help their run rate.

[WoodyTHFC]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Well I said Middlesex can be inconsistent: Gloucestershire to beat Surrey 5/6 lad 10 pts I suppose the danger here is that gloucester potential could take their foot of the peddle knowing they are in such a great position to win their group but bracewell isnt the sort of guy to let a team rest on their laurels and they should still be bang up for this game. Their squad is still strong and in fact is stronger than late with Kirby back in. In Surrey they face a team who still only have one win all season and that was a game that yorkshire lost as much as anything. Sure they came close at the weekend against sussex and they have ramps back to improve from that side as well. However the facts remain that they have only won once all season, whereas gloucester have won all their games in this and have also started the county well as well. There was a huge gulf in these sides when they played a tv game earlier in the season and if Gloucester are focused for this match, I can see them getting another win at odds I expected to be lower.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Friends Provident Trophy 2009 Hard fought win for Yorkshire today but a win is a win. Shame that group can't end now really :lol. +3.64 for the game though and back to -6.66 going into tomorrow.